Warlock's Shield
by Lia79.dreamer
Summary: My humble take on the time travel idea. She is a rare being that had not been seen in Camelot for centuries and it is just her rotten luck to be saddled with protecting the Prince of all Prats; befriending a warlock on the other hand... Life is certainly far from dull as she tries to keep Merlin's secret safe and stop herself from killing her charge in frustration.
1. Arrival

It was like any other day in Camelot. Merlin had been Arthur's servant for a little while after the incident with knight Valiant and things have been rather calm. It was a dull day like any other in which Merlin was forced to witness one of the councils purely because Arthur didn't want to sit in on it alone in his boredom while the King debated with his advisors on food and taxes and the like. Lady Morgana was present and sitting idly across from Arthur, barely concealing her disinterest in the proceedings.

So it came as no surprise, really, when the monotony of the day was suddenly broken up by a man bursting into the council chambers unannounced with murder in his eyes. The knights immediately jumped up to defend the King, Arthur and Sir Leon front and centre, while the rest of the courtiers scrambled for the exit. Merlin flattened himself against the wall next to Gaius, trying to keep the prince prat in his view and stay unseen at the same time.

"Uther Pendragon!" the man raged, waving his arms around frantically, his eyes flashing gold – a force field erupted around him closing off a good space in the middle of the room, preventing the knights from reaching him. "Too long have the oppression of magic continued and today I will make sure Camelot falls!"

Merlin rolled his eyes at the predictability and subtly prodded the shield to see if he could get through it. Gaius gave him a sideways look and Merlin shook his head in disappointment – there was nothing he could do this time.

While Merlin was busy, the man had yelled other equally unoriginal things all centred on Uther's evilness and oppression of magic before things suddenly got very interesting.

The sorcerer began a spell that had all present shrinking back in fear, but to their immense surprise it had nothing to do with them; instead some kind of window opened mid-air and the sorcerer reached in promptly pulling out a girl partly by her hair. She landed on the floor with a painful thud and a yelp, regaining her feet with surprising speed and a few colourful curses.

She was _fascinating_. She wore clothes Merlin had never seen, dressed in a fashion he'd never even contemplated a woman could. Her fitted trousers showed off her long legs, her tunic also very form fitting and lacking sleeves. Her barely shoulder length light brown hair were a little messy and she glared at the sorcerer so darkly Merlin involuntarily swallowed – he could only imagine how scary it was for the man.

"What is going on?" Uther demanded furiously, looking between the newcomer and the sorcerer.

"Yes, please enlighten me," the girl spoke sharply with a very strange accent. "What in the blazes is going on? Where the hell are we? Oh, and do introduce yourself, while at it, eh?"

Somehow, Merlin wasn't sure how, she managed to make all her questions sound like demanding orders more impressive than Uther in a fit, making it painfully clear that she _was not amused_. And if the answers were not given… well it won't end well.

The room erupted into a bit of chaos as everyone spoke all at once. Uther was sputtering about sorcery and death sentences, the sorcerer was yelling about Camelot's demise when he killed the girl he's dragged into this mess, Gaius' eyebrows had all but climbed off his head and Merlin was beginning to feel a terrible migraine starting.

The girl looked rather bewildered by everything being said. Merlin felt sympathy flair up as he watched her absorb the happenings with gritted teeth and sharp eyes, her posture so tense she was like a taunt bowstring. He wasn't looking forward to the moment she snapped if her thunderous countenance of supressed fury was any indication.

"_Silence_!" The command was so sudden and so forceful that everyone in the room, including the King stopped what they were doing, effectively freezing on the spot. The girl took a deep breath and stared down those present in turn. "Let me get this straight. He," she gestured to the sorcerer who was suddenly very pale, "magically brought me back to the past; to _Camelot_, which is a myth where I am from by the way, and by killing me he somehow thinks he will defeat you," she gestured to the King. "What a load of bullshit if I ever heard one!" She finally exploded. "You," she pointed at the sorcerer that wisely stepped back, "are raving flipping mad, and if you don't send me back home _this instant_, there will be hell to pay!"

For a long moment, no one moved or spoke. Then the sorcerer seemed to regain himself and that murderous glint entered his eyes again.

"No," he cackled madly. "Once you die, the future of Camelot will die with you! Even Emrys will not save you!"

"You make no shitting sense!" the girl shook her head throwing her hands up, obviously hanging onto control by fingertips. Merlin was hoping she would introduce herself – it was strange continuously calling her girl in his head.

Offended by the comment, the sorcerer chanted something and threw a ball of energy at her, which she just barely dodged, crashing into the barrier on her way. Three more were evaded before finally one connected – Merlin winced, expecting her to drop dead, but she just looked at her shoulder in confusion where the magic hit her. The entire room stared at her in fascination as she studied her unblemished shoulder in confusion.

"Impossible!" the sorcerer threw spell after spell at her, but they all frizzled out into nothing as soon as they reached her.

"Remarkable," Gaius commented having come closer to the King. "She is a Shield."

"A what?" the girl asked looking completely baffled. She was distracted from answers when the sorcerer screamed in rage and came at her with fists flying. She cursed and ducked away, until she had nowhere to run – a look of determination entered her eyes and she dodged his outstretched arm to grab at his shoulders and kneed him _hard_. All men present cringed at where her knee went, as the sorcerer howled in a strange slightly strangled pitch; the girl wasn't done though, as she proceeded to send him to the floor with a sloppy punch to the nose. There was a crack and the man went down boneless, while she rubbed her knuckles.

"You were saying?" she turned to Gaius completely ignoring the keening man at her feet.

"A Shield is a very rare being. They can resist all and any magic cast at them, or someone they stand in front of. They are also impervious to the effects of magical amulets and the like," Gaius explained patiently. She nodded jerkily.

"Right," she ran her hand over the barrier between her and the room. "You seem to know a lot about what is going on, so…" she gestured to her prison. "How do I get out?"

Merlin had long since moved out from his hiding place and came forward to inspect the barrier. "It's so solid," he murmured, attracting her attention for the first time. She glanced at him curiously, her dark eyes turning out to be hazel – brown with green and golden specks throughout. It was the first time she'd looked at him and her gaze was rather scary – it felt as if she could see right into his soul, reading all his secrets in his eyes.

"Since you are resistant to all things magic," Gaius instructed, standing next to Merlin, "concentrate on pushing your hand through."

She gave him a sceptical look, but put her hand on the barrier and frowned. After a few moments of tense silence, her shoulders dropped in defeat. "Nothing. Although I can sort of feel it thrumming," she said thoughtfully. "There are layers in there."

"Can you?" Gaius was watching the girl with interest as she poked at the barrier. "Most interesting."

"Gaius," the King called tersely.

"I believe there is no other way to break through than for the sorcerer to take the barrier down," Gaius said in his unimpressed tone. "As to the young lady, we can safely conclude that she is an innocent victim in all of this who is in dire need of assistance in her bid to return home."

"Grand," the girl in question rolled her eyes. "How do I make him drop it?"

"Kill him," King raged instantly. "Sorcery shall never be tolerated in Camelot!"

The girl stared at him with disbelief. "Right. I've never harmed anyone before and I'm in no hurry to change that. Why don't you do it yourself?"

Gaius somehow managed to keep the King from lashing out at her and Merlin hid a smile. She was a spitfire.

"I will not be deterred," the sorcerer slurred from the ground, reminding everyone that he was in fact still there and a threat. "You may resist magic, but you will succumb to a blade!"

He stood rather unsteadily, pulling out a dagger from his robes and Merlin saw the girl pale rapidly. She pressed her back to the barrier and it so happened that Merlin was right on the other side.

"I don't know how to fight," she mumbled with wide eyes as the man advanced at her. Merlin searched his brain and magic for any way he could help her, but came up with nothing. The Knights had circled the barrier, obviously looking for a way in, but it was all down to her.

"Trip him and then grab the knife?" Merlin suggested weakly. She glanced over her shoulder at him momentarily and whatever she saw seemed to give her determination she needed. She was tiny, Merlin thought worriedly, a head shorter than him and almost as skinny. _She's got no chance_, he realised.

The sorcerer, whose name still remained a mystery, finally reached his target and with a wild yell attacked her. She locked her jaw and ducked, barely missing the blade and tried to tackle the man; they went down in a heap, the knife falling next to them. He rolled them over, pinning her to the ground and grabbed the knife going for her neck. She caught his arm, but wasn't strong enough to oppose his full strength and weight combined. Finally she lost the struggle and the knife found its way between her ribs. She groaned in pain, her eyes opening even wider as the man grinned madly, standing in victory. The girl remained on the floor clutching at the handle of the knife, making no sound but still breathing.

"Gaius!" Merlin called frantically, watching her struggle with each breath.

"Behold how the saviour of Camelot dies!" the sorcerer cackled. "And now you shall follow!" he stood straighter, ready to cast a final spell. His eyes started glowing and everyone in the room stepped back as he chanted; Merlin was the only one who was still watching the dying girl on the floor and was stunned to see her force herself to her knees and using the barrier for support to stand. She wobbled, pale as snow, but regained her feet and lifted her head, her eyes fixing on the sorcerer. She pushed off the barrier, drawing the attention of more and more people, who were too stunned or scared to give her away, and made her way to her intended target. Once right behind him, she gritted her teeth and pulled the dagger out, involuntarily crying out in pain; the sorcerer turned back to the noise and was met with the dagger slashing up his throat and sliding into his head with no resistance.

They stood facing each other for a long moment before death caught up with the sorcerer and pain with her and they both fell down. Merlin had been almost leaning on the barrier and was first to discover it gone as he all but fell to the floor next to them.

Instantly the room erupted into a flurry of action; the knights went for the dead sorcerer to make sure he was truly dead, Gaius started fussing over the girl on the floor and the King stalked around the room in anger.

"She is alive," Gaius' suddenly declared loudly, stopping everyone in their tracks. "I also have reasons to believe she may be able to recover from this."

"Just reasons to believe?"

Everyone looked down to see the girl still conscious, watching them with amusement. She moved slightly and gritted her teeth, instantly stopping.

"Don't move, young lady," Gaius ordered sternly, examining the wound. "But do try to stay conscious."

"My _name_ is Elena," she ground out with annoyance, tempered by fatigue. Merlin smiled and grabbed her hand, trying to distract her.

"It's a very pretty name," Merlin commented, blushing as she directed her undivided attention to him. She gave him a weak smile in response. "I'm Merlin, this is Gaius. He's the Court Physician. He will fix you."

She chuckled at him and promptly winced. "I'm sure he will try his best, Merlin. Nice to meet you, by the way."

"We must bring her to my chambers, she needs treatment and rest," Gaius interrupted in his no-nonsense tone.

"Sir Leon," Arthur called, stepped through the crowd easily. The knight followed him instantly. Under Gaius' strict supervision, they lifted her carefully and followed the physician and Morgana, who finally managed to pull out of her frightened stupor, out of the room. Surprisingly enough, the King followed right after them, after giving a few orders on the procedure.

They crowded into the physician's quarters momentarily, before Gaius ordered everyone out forcefully, sending Merlin scrambling for this and that, letting only Morgana and Gwen stay to help. The entourage ended up outside the door and soon even Merlin was kicked out.

"Arthur," Uther finally spoke. "After what Gaius had said, I believe it will be most beneficial to Camelot to have her stay. Lend Gaius your servant, to ensure her recovery – it was a grievous wound. Once she is recovered we will see how her talents can be of use to the Kingdom."

"Yes, Father," Arthur bowed his head in acknowledgment as the King strode off. "Merlin, you are to help Gaius until evening meal – then you will bring my dinner and report on Elena's condition. Next morning you bring my breakfast and give me any further information as it arises. Clear?"

"Yes, sire," Merlin bobbed his head, for once not arguing at all and the prince gestured for Leon to follow him as he left his servant with the physician.

To say Merlin was intrigued would be a major understatement. He didn't miss the familiarity in her face when he introduced himself and that slightly worried him, although at the same time, he felt that he could trust her. Deciding he was more useful actually doing something, Merlin resolutely went back inside to see what he could help with. He found Gaius carefully stitching Elena's wound, while Gwen was going through the vials on the shelf and Morgana was holding Elena's hand and talking nonsense clearly trying to distract her.

"Done," Gaius declared, taking a vial from Gwen and imploring Elena to drink it. The girl was a little hesitant, but complied and swallowed it in one go.

"I hope you recover soon," Morgana said, patting Elena's hand.

"I hope so, too, Morgana," Elena smiled faintly. "Thank you for staying here. Helping a complete stranger."

"I have a feeling you'd have done the same," Morgana smiled.

"You should rest," Gaius gently interrupted. "It had been a long day."

"Gwen and I will come by to visit you tomorrow," Morgana promised Elena and stood. "Rest well."

"You too," Elena waved weakly. "See you two tomorrow."

Once the women departed, Merlin found himself occupying the stool Morgana was previously using.

"So, Merlin," Elena said suddenly, drawing Gaius' attention. "If this is Camelot and that blonde pillock that was so annoyed at having to carry me was Arthur, does that make you the most famous warlock of all time?"

Merlin chocked on air, already stuttering out denials and realising quickly that he was digging himself a deeper hole with each word he said, started backing away from the bed, only to be stopped mid-word by cool fingers on his wrist.

"Breathe, I have no intention to tell anyone that. I was just curious," Elena seemed genuinely worried for his reaction. "I didn't know magic was real; never mind all the rest of this mess."

"You will keep my secret?" Merlin asked wide-eyed. Elena smiled at him almost shyly.

"I have no intention to send you to your death, Merlin. Which is why I am mentioning this now, when the rest of the congregation had left. So, are you?"

Merlin found himself largely unable to deny Elena any answers she wanted and before long was telling her everything – from being born with magic to how he saved Arthur's life at the Tournament just recently. Anything magic fascinated her, and she asked a barrage of questions that he was all too happy to answer; Gaius had found a few moments to butt in, explaining the rules of Camelot, the traditions, the customs.

Right before Elena finally succumbed to exhaustion, she managed to get a promise out of Merlin to show her his magic and introduce her to the dragon (the last was a whispered since Gaius was none the wiser that Merlin had discovered _that_ one).

Both Gaius and Merlin were left in a shell shocked silence when Elena was asleep, until Merlin smiled widely at his mentor. Gaius chuckled quietly at his excitement in finding a new friend and waved the boy off to go and get dinner for the Prince.

Once Merlin was out of the room, Gaius turned back to the girl on the spare cot in his chambers. He was rather worried about her condition, which he did not let on while the youngsters were present. The wound was bad, deadly in most circumstances and no matter how healthy and strong, Elena's chances of survival were slim. Another thing that worried him was the complications that he knew were coming; he was tempted to have Merlin heal her, but healing was complicated and too much for his fledgling abilities and she was a Shield besides. No magic was going to work on her, of that he was certain.

It was going to be a long night.


	2. Recovery

It had been three days since Elena's unexpected arrival in Camelot. She had slept through most of that time, having caught a fever somehow despite all of Gaius' efforts. It didn't seem too bad, but she tossed and tuned in what appeared to be fever induced nightmares keeping both Gaius and Merlin awake late into the night since they could not really do anything about them. It was in early mornings that she'd calmed down enough for Gaius to administer sleeping draughts and other medicines that left her in deep sleep for half a day. Morgana and Gwen had stopped by to check on her a few times, and Merlin had all but completely abandoned his duties as Arthur's manservant to help Gaius; the prince had come to see what was keeping Merlin once and after finding out the rather precarious situation Elena was in, he left Merlin with Gaius completely.

By the end of the week Gaius was sure she was dying. Merlin had paled at that declaration and looked helplessly at him for a while before asking if he could do something. Gaius sent him off to clear his head and stopped to look at the sickly pale Shield. The fever had not lessened, the wound was infected despite all treatment and Elena had not woken at all in four days – which meant she'd eaten nothing since that small bowl of broth he and Merlin managed to pour down her throat in her one lucid moment.

This was turning out to be quite a disaster the likes of which Gaius hadn't had since his youth and humble beginnings as a physician.

Merlin had managed to convince him to sleep that night, and was left watching over their patient. The old physician was suspicious at first, but still did as Merlin urged, hoping that the boy would be trying to do magic to save Elena's life despite the fact that it was likely futile.

And Merlin was planning to do just that. Once Gaius was asleep, he crept back to his room to get the magic book Gaius gave him and spent the next hour or so trying to find a spell that the dragon reassured him will work.

He'd gone to see the dragon when Gaius sent him away. To his immense surprise the dragon appeared to know about Elena and even shared that she was meant to help him fulfil his destiny, protecting both him and the prince. According to the dragon Merlin could heal Elena despite the fact that she as a Shield was immune for lack of better word to all and any magic. Well, apart from his.

Merlin had a distinct feeling he was missing something when dragon spoke of Elena's part in the destiny and how his magic could affect her, but the dragon didn't offer any further information and simply flew off once he told Merlin what could have been considered a riddle.

At present, Merlin had found the spell the dragon mentioned and started reading over it, making sure he knew it well before attempting to heal Elena. She was strangely silent and still this night, which was worrying, since before she mumbled and tossed in feverish dreams.

Merlin wasn't sure how long he'd spent trying to learn the spell, but the stillness of the room was getting to him and he decided that he'd not get any better reading anymore and leaned over Elena, whispering the spell. On first try nothing happened, and Merlin tried his best not to be disappointed, thinking of how long it took him to master the animation spell that saved Arthur's life in the fight with Knight Valiant.

So he tried again. And again. And again, until he was _sure _it wasn't going to work, but he tried once more anyway – because really, what was there to lose at this point?

It worked.

He felt his magic react, rush through him at the summons, and Elena's breathing eased. He was suddenly exhausted, but fought his fatigue to check on the wound – it was far from completely healed, but it didn't look infected anymore and seemed to be mending quickly now. In his excitement, Merlin quite forgot that he wasn't going to tell Gaius that he used magic, dropping his book and scrambling to his mentor's cot.

"Gaius! Gaius!" the old physician awoke quickly to see his ward almost bouncing with a wide smile next to his bed. "Elena is better!"

The physician reserved judgement, telling Merlin to calm down and be quiet, which the young warlock promptly ignored, rushing back to Elena's bed and plopping down on a stool, watching impatiently as Gaius conducted his usual checks. To the physician's immense surprise Elena was indeed better: her fever was gone almost completely, her breathing and heartbeat were steady and much stronger than when he went to sleep and the wound showed no signs of ever being infected. In fact it was well on the mend.

"Well done, my boy," Gaius smiled at his ward who stared at him in surprise before giving him a blinding smile. "I cannot say for certain when she will wake, but you saved her life. Pack away your book and go to sleep, Merlin. Elena is well enough to be left alone now."

Elena woke just before midday the next day. Merlin had been cleaning the chambers while Gaius organised his potions and prepared more, keeping a careful eye on the slumbering girl, so he was first to notice the signs that she was finally waking up.

"Merlin, fetch a cup of water. Elena is waking," Gaius ordered his ward and hastened to the bed with a remedy already in hand. Elena shifted and groaned slightly, blinking her eyes open and squinting at her surroundings.

"Elena!" Merlin exclaimed happily, almost spilling the water in his haste to get back to the bed. "You're awake! How are you feeling?"

"Like death warmed over," Elena coughed, her voice scratchy from disuse Gaius took the cup from Merlin and added the remedy in before giving it back. "How long was I asleep?" She rasped taking the cup Merlin offered with a grateful smile.

"Over a week, my girl," Gaius sat down on a stool next to her bed after checking her again. "You gave us quite a scare."

"Sorry," Elena smiled sheepishly, glancing between them. "What did I miss?"

"Not much, I think," Merlin smiled widely, still unable to wipe the look of happiness from his face. "Lady Morgana and Gwen had been in here to see you every other day and even Arthur stopped by once."

"Really," Elena looked sceptical. "Arthur stopped by to see how I was doing?"

Merlin blushed. "Well, yes…"

Elena chuckled, weakly. "Right."

"Merlin had been watching over you," Gaius said with a look of veiled mischief. "He also healed you last night."

Elena turned to Merlin, who blushed crimson. "You did?" when the warlock nodded shyly, Elena smiled and touched his arm to make him look up. "Thank you, Merlin. For everything. You, too, Gaius. I won't be here if it weren't for you two."

Now both men were almost blushing at the heartfelt gratitude.

"It was the least we could do," Gaius hedged. "Now. You better eat something, Elena. It had been a while since you last had any food and you need strength to recover completely."

"It's a good thing that we'd stopped by the kitchens then," came a voice from the doorway. The trio turned to see Gwen and Morgana, both smiling widely at the sight of Elena awake and holding a few plates and a pitcher. "It's almost midday and I hoped we could eat here with you. There should be enough food for everyone here," Morgana showed the plates piled high with food.

"Certainly, my lady," Gaius invited the women inside, closing the door behind them. Merlin had taken a bench and dragged it to Elena's cot, creating a makeshift table, and brought stools and chairs over while Morgana and Gwen set the food and pitcher with cups on the bench.

"How are you feeling?" Morgana asked Elena while everyone was seated. Elena smiled at the concern in the Lady's voice.

"I'm much better, thank you," she took the bowl Gaius handed her gratefully. "Gaius and Merlin are truly miracle workers."

"They are!" Gwen agreed heartily, helping Elena sit up and taking the extra pillow Merlin had procured to prop the still weak girl up. "Now eat – it won't do to have you sick from hunger now that you are finally better."

Despite Elena's protests, Morgana and Gwen were determined to make sure she ate and drank plenty, fussing over her while they ate. Gaius sat back and watched the youngsters as they chatted, asking Elena about where she was from and what she liked; Elena answered their questions and asked plenty in return, so curious in all and everything. Finally Gaius decided that it was enough excitement for now.

"I must interrupt you here," he finally stepped into the conversation. "Elena had just woken up and is still recovering. We should let her rest."

Morgana and Gwen's demeanour instantly changed to concerned and they quickly excused themselves with the plates, promising to come by later to check on Elena again and keep her company if she will be up to it. It was obvious that Elena was already exhausted again, still not well after the brush with death.

"Well," Elena sighed and closed her eyes, "that was…intense." She opened one eye and glanced at Merlin. "Are they always like that?"

Merlin nodded. "They are."

"They are both very kind," Elena said quietly, sinking back into the pillows. "In fact, besides the King and that crazy magician everyone had been very kind. Are all people in Camelot like that?"

"Most of them, yes."

"I think I like this place better than where I am from," Elena's voice turned to whisper and before Merlin could ask why she was asleep again.

It took another two days before Elena was able to stay awake entire day. Gaius was very strict on what she could and couldn't do and any kind of movement was out of question. So, it was either Morgana or Gwen keeping her company or Gaius, or the numerous books. Merlin had gone back to work, but popped in to check on her wellbeing through the day, sometimes even sneaking her some treat he snatched from the kitchens.

Third day found Elena sitting up on her own, talking animatedly with Morgana about sword fighting and horse riding and making plans to learn both while she had the chance. Gwen and Morgana had rounded up some maids and organised a bath for Elena, along with some clean clothing and now Elena, while still forbidden from stepping further than a few feet from the cot without supervision, was looking and obviously feeling wonders better than a week ago.

The discussion of merits of short swords against long swords was interrupted by the King entering the room with a loud flourish, startling Morgana into jumping to her feet and Elena bolting upright and cringing as the sudden movement pulled her still healing wound. Gaius trailed into the room after the King, giving Elena a concerned look when he noticed her pallid face.

"Just pulled the wound, Gaius. I'll be fine," she smiled softly and allowed Morgana to ease her back into the bed. The King watched the scene with impassive and slightly impatient look, waiting for the women to acknowledge him.

"Gaius mentioned that you are well on your way to recovery," Uther said without preamble, looking Elena over critically. She nodded and the King continued, "We also discussed the possibilities of your return to your homeland, but had been unable to find any solutions; in light of this, I have a proposition."

"What kind of proposition?" Elena asked curiously, sitting up a little straighter and assuring Morgana that she was alright.

"You have seen that magic threatens this kingdom constantly. I offer you to stay here until you find your path home, assisting us in defending Camelot against the evils of magic."

"But I am one person. Besides, I know nothing about being a Shield or magic or fighting for that matter," Elena shrugged. "If push comes to shove, I'd be useless."

"Which is why, your efforts will be concentrated on Prince Arthur until you learn more. Arthur oversees the Knights' training and you will join them to learn what you must," the King replied resolutely. It was quite obvious that he was determined to convince Elena to stay and protect the prince and his kingdom and had something to counter any argument she could make. "Meanwhile, Gaius and Geoffrey would be searching for other incidents of this nature and possibilities for your return."

Elena thought about the proposition, looking between the resolute King, hopeful Morgana and desperately trying to appear impassive Gaius. "Alright," she finally said. "Where do I start?"

_I apologise for the wait. My use seem to be a little fickle in when I write and what I write. I know that this chapter is slow and probably rather boring and I promise that things will begin happening very soon. I was planning to actually start with the series themselves, adding Elena to the show as it goes. I am open to suggestions - if anyone has ideas, please share them, since I have no set in stone plan on what shall happen._

Thank you for reading and please review.

Lia


	3. No rest for the Wicked

**Apologies for the long wait aside, go on ahead and have the chapter.**

The days that followed found Elena almost torn between following Arthur around at Uther's insistence and training with Leon. Leon had more or less taken her under his wing, being best after Arthur, who seemed to harbour as much dislike for Elena as she did for him.

It was surprising, really that the two hadn't tried to murder each other. Yet. They constantly argued and Arthur even lamented to Merlin that he didn't know why he was saddled with the two most disrespectful people in all of Camelot. On the other hand, Merlin was ecstatic. Elena pulled no punches when it came to the spoiled prince. She argued, she called him names, she constantly talked back and no amount of threatening could put a stop to it; seeing her put Arthur in his place had put a smile on many a face amongst the servants and Elena had quickly found friends just about anywhere in the city.

It wasn't all sunshine and roses though. The knights had been weary of having a woman swing swords amongst them and the courtiers had scoffed at her any chance they got, but Elena continued to be her unflappable self and ignored the former and scoffed right back at the latter. The King had tried to chastise her behaviour whilst in court but his words fell on deaf ears – Elena didn't give a damn about the delicate sensibilities of nobles she may have been offending and she had said just that in front of the entire court, adding a few colourful curses for good measure when it appeared that her point had not gotten across. Appalled and scandalised, the nobles left her be and even the King could do nothing but bear it – having her stay and be in court was his idea after all, which Elena had gleefully pointed out any chance she got when Uther argued with her.

Life in Camelot was certainly far from dull, between Merlin and Elena teaming up together to pick on Arthur and Elena holding nothing back where her opinions were concerned on just about anything.

She criticised the cloaks of the knights saying that those things were ridiculously impractical and too red, the dresses she was often required to wear (which she not so politely ignored and still wore trousers much to the amusement of some and dismay of others), the length of the stairs people had to climb to get places around the castle – you name it, Elena likely had something to say about it.

Her opinions or temper was not helped at all due to the sheer amount of learning she had to do before she could be of any use in a skirmish and do any real protecting.

Elena's training included a great many things. She learned how to shoot a bow, how to ride a horse, how to fight with daggers and spears and the list went on. She avoided longswords like the plague, mostly because the ones the knights used were far too long and heavy and Elena preferred to be quick.

It was a long process, getting her to use all the weapons properly and really, anyone less patient than Leon would not have been able to do it; she was almost as bad as Merlin at first. Maybe even worse. But she had one thing Merlin seemed to lack – coordination. And Elena was a quick enough study. Leon had quickly discovered where her strengths lie and had tried to tailor her training to build on that, but it would be some time before Elena stopped being quite as useless in a fight as she kept saying she was. Which in all honesty, against the backdrop of the knights of Camelot, she really truly was.

It was not unusual to see her running laps around town, sometimes cursing all the way – or for however long she had breath enough to curse while jogging; doing cartwheels on the grass in the training yard, climbing trees, balancing on fences – it was quite entertaining to watch and people often did, much to Elena's mortification. Still, the girl was nothing if not stubborn, so every time she fell, she got up and tried again, often ending up back in Gaius' chambers with some sort of injury of varying gravity.

On a few memorable occasions when she had to stay in bed for a day or two, she got so bored, Elena asked Gaius about his work and Merlin wasn't sure if he should feel bad for Elena having to bear Gaius talking about anatomy or just be glad it wasn't him on the receiving end of the lecture for once. Unlike Merlin, Elena seemed to be interested in at least part of what Gaius was saying, which made the old physician positively ecstatic.

Life was clearly far from dull. But it also was far from safe.

It was around a month after Elena's unconventional introduction to Camelot that the news that King Bayard was riding for Camelot with his court to sign some treaty with Uther reached the city and blew the situation out of proportions.

The entire castle was in uproar. In fact, the entire city seemed to be in uproar. It was chaos, with people running to and fro, servants scrubbing every inch of the castle until it shone like polished steel, courtiers pulling out their finery and fretting over fashions or something just as silly, the Knights getting their armour perfect and their RED (deserving of capital letters) cloaks extra red. It was madness and Elena was caught right in the middle of it, living in the castle and having to follow the Princess Prat around for the better part of the day.

As much as Elena would have loved to get under the Prince's skin in the abundance of perfect opportunities every moment of the preparations presented, she knew better than to piss him off just yet because he was likely to take his anger out on poor servants and his favourite target – Merlin. Which was something Elena tried to avoid, because even amidst all the running around, Merlin and she quickly became friends.

Merlin was just the kind of person that was pretty much impossible not to like. He was contagious in his sunny personality and while Elena had not encountered his more serious side yet, she knew it existed (in theory). Despite that, he was almost always smiling or cracking jokes and it was impossible not to follow suit. Merlin was also very clever, something that Arthur didn't seem to realise, so it brought Elena endless entertainment watching Merlin crack jokes at Arthur's expense and waiting to see how long it takes Arthur to realise he was at the butt of it.

But she digressed. _Again_.

It was time for the peace treaty signing with some neighbouring King or other; really, Gaius was going to give her The Eyebrow again if he knew she had forgotten who was signing what and why, but Elena couldn't be bothered to remember it yet. So, some king was coming to sign a piece of paper and all that pomp and ceremony would be over in a day or two when the entourage left.

Arthur had gone remarkably red in the face, very closely resembling the colour of his pretty red cloak, when Elena had voiced the above to him while he was pouring over some reports, which resulted in Gaius trying to educate her on the geography and political situation in and outside Camelot. Most of what he talked about went right over Elena's head, but she was confident she would be able to recall all of it eventually. She just had other things to worry about for now.

_Like figuring out how to get out of wearing that ridiculous dressy thing_.

The dressy thing in question was actually a concession from a dress on Uther's part when Elena had outright refused to wear one for the occasion, prestige of House Pendragon notwithstanding. The bodice was a lacing up, kind of corseted shirt with sleeves that allowed plenty of movement, while still accentuating her figure nicely. The lower part was a bit more complicated. She was to wear trousers underneath and there was a skirt of sorts. It was shorter than the ladies' dresses and didn't quite touch the ground and it was open in the front. In fact, part of the skirt was missing in the front.

To be honest, Elena kind of liked it. It had style and spirit and she thought that it suited her well enough. Except there was a glaring problem: if she agreed to wear it, Uther might think that she was finally starting to listen and he will begin to give her orders expecting her to obey. And she just couldn't have that.

At least she was luckier than Merlin in that department. It took everything Elena had to keep from bursting out laughing when Arthur pulled out the ceremonial robes and demanded Merlin wear them for the feast. The robes themselves were bad enough, but the hat absolutely took the cake. Just the feathers alone were ridiculous enough to warrant being ripped clean off and tossed out the window, but of course Arthur thought himself clever and was walking around smugly for the rest of the day before the feast much to Merlin's dismay.

Elena supposed that their required attire was some sort of karma for having tormented Arthur and the court for the past few weeks with abandon. In any case, it was kind of too late to put up a fight now and Elena really didn't want to see what Uther would do if she ruins his party with her antics quite yet; she was far from being able to hold her own, but as soon as she could back her words with ability to fight, she would revisit the situation and make sure something like that won't be repeated.

_At least I don't have to wear a hat_, Elena thought resigned to wear the dress and be quiet in court for once. She just wanted the entire ordeal to be over. The only entertainment she had was the stories about the encounters Merlin told her about in the course of the few days of frantic preparation.

Elena found it entirely too amusing how Merlin reacted to the pretty handmaiden from Mercia that bumped into him in the corridor the other day. Gaius had told her what Merlin hadn't and Elena had been chuckling for an hour after that while following Arthur and the Prince may or may not have come to the conclusion that she was a tad mad. Not that she really cared about what the pompous prince thought.

When Merlin came into Gaius' chambers carrying the ridiculous garb… Elena chocked on the water she was drinking while Gaius had barely restrained himself from laughing. Poor Merlin looked absolutely miserable.

Elena's good mood, however, vanished when she heard about Bayard's boring speeches from Arthur. Now _that_ would put a dumper on anyone's mood and Arthur was particularly smug about having an ability to make both Merlin and Elena suffer through the above mentioned speeches with him.

_What a jerk_.

In any case, the feast was starting soon and while Elena felt the overwhelming desire to fake sick or break a leg, she knew that getting out of it won't do her any good in the long run. Besides, she could try to annoy Arthur by pretending to be _very interested_ in what was going on in the hall and his annoyance would be the only entertaining thing for the evening.

Well, that and Merlin's hat.

She should have known that thinking like that would likely jinx it.

**Dear readers,**

**I apologise for the long wait and my impromptu disappearance, but real life got in the way and my creativity died first when the stress levels went through the roof. I'm trying to get everything back on track now and I'm working on all the stories, including this one, but the progress is slow. It will take some time to rekindle the muse and get everything going, but I promise I won't abandon any of my stories. I don't know how long it will take to get the next chapters out, but I will get them to you as soon as I can.**

**Thank you for your understanding**

**Lia**


	4. It's always the pretty ones

_**Hi!**_

_**I did it! I wrote another chapter! I even have the rest of the episode almost done, but I thought I'd post this part first and then finish off the rest as it comes along without rushing it. Thank you all for being so patient with me; huge thanks to all the people who commented or followed the story regardless of how slowly I've been writing.**_

_**I am getting back on track with everything, so hopefully my muse won't decide to abandon me again and I will be able to keep the chapters coming!**_

_**On with the story!**_

It's always the pretty ones...

The feast and the celebration of the signing was in full swing. Gwen had found Merlin's hat as amusing as Elena had and the two had chuckled when Merlin hastily took it off as soon as the trio spied a pretty handmaiden across the hall, staring at Merlin. Gwen chuckled as Elena teased Merlin about the attractive girl and then excused herself to attend to Lady Morgana who looked almost as bored as Elena felt at the head table.

It wasn't so bad at the feast. Things were actually happening, people were talking, moving. Then the time for the signing came and the proceedings in the Hall came to a grinding halt.

The whole signing was obnoxious, in Elena's humble opinion. For something as trivial as signing of a piece of paper, even a peace treaty between two warring countries, there was too much… _stuff_. There were too many people in the hall. There were too many fake pleasantries involved. It was all just too much.

While Bayard droned on about peace and loses and new beginnings or some such, Merlin was approached by the pretty handmaiden Gaius told Elena about with a distressed look about her; after a few words the two escaped to the hall outside.

_Uh-oh_.

Elena wasn't sure what exactly it was that did not sit right with her about the entire situation, but she just knew that things were about to go south. Because Merlin the warlock was involved and because this was Camelot. Stuff happened at feasts.

And of course, right on cue, just as all the ridiculousness was about to be wrapped up with a toast Merlin burst back into the hall yelling about Arthur's goblet being poisoned. And of course, Bayard took offence and the hall nearly erupted into violence; hell, even Morgana picked up a weapon, never mind that it was a table knife – Elena would have laughed, if the situation wouldn't have escalated into Uther demanding Merlin drink the wine to prove it was in fact poisoned and he was telling the truth. As if Gaius couldn't have examined it and maybe tested it or something, to check and see if he was right. No. Uther demanded Merlin must drink it, or else. A really backwards way to prove it, but neither Arthur nor Gaius could do anything to stop the stubborn King.

Arthur tried the 'he is drunk' approach, then 'misunderstanding' approach to excuse Merlin's accusation and draw the attention away from him, but nothing seemed to sway Uther's opinion and set course of action.

"Merlin," Elena tried, since Arthur was failing so spectacularly at diffusing the situation, but with one look from the secret warlock she shut up and let him have at it. _Stubborn suicidal git_, she thought tersely and Merlin's lips twitched, no doubt guessing where her thoughts had gone. He just knew her that well already.

Didn't mean she was any less invested in making sure he didn't do something stupid. That dragon did say something about watching his back after all, and she intended to do just that – which included stopping him from trying to kill himself by drinking poison, even if it was to save Arthur.

Of course, the crux of the situation was that she couldn't stop Merlin drinking the poison without getting him into even more trouble with Uther than he already was; never mind what Bayard might do to get revenge for his 'wounded' pride.

So Merlin drunk the wine.

Nothing happened for a minute and Merlin had muttered that it was fine with quite a bit of surprise; Elena wasn't so sure – mostly because when Merlin said something was wrong, it usually was, and while she wouldn't discount that the handmaiden had lied, she still thought that the situation stank.

And then Merlin coughed.

He coughed and choked, face scrunched up in pain and turning red from the lack of air, until he fainted and slammed into the floor.

Everything was still and silent as the attendees stared in mute disbelief at the unconscious servant until Uther started yelling. "It was poisoned! Guards!"

Bayard was no fool, so there was no fighting – the Mercians were escorted out of the Hall and to the dungeons while Uther raved about traitors and threats to Camelot.

Which seemed trivial to Elena because Merlin was on the floor dying and no one save her, Arthur and Gaius seemed to care. Gaius directed Gwen to take the goblet and Arthur heaved Merlin over his shoulder; Elena felt useless as they rushed through the castle to the Physician's rooms, left without a task and simply tagging along with the crew.

While Arthur settled Merlin down on a cot with surprising gentleness, Gwen raced off to gather water and towels, Gaius had shuffled over to check his ward, leaving Elena standing awkwardly on the side clutching the goblet Gwen passed to her on her way out.

It was an ornate goblet, deceptively pretty and all that – except it was killing her friend and Elena had a sudden urge to throw it against the wall with all her strength. It won't have done any good and probably won't even make her feel any better, but at least then she would be doing _something_.

She was pulled out of glaring at the goblet when Gaius said he needed to identify the poison and needed the stupid cup to examine it. Which led to the discovery of a flower petal and Gaius _finally_ giving Elena something to do – namely climb up the rickety stair and bring down two books on herbal lore to search for the petal Gaius now had in hand. They were both flipping through the books when Gaius found it.

The Mortaeus flower did not sound remotely good and Elena was not surprised it was a poison. The fact that it only grew in some obscure cave, guarded by some incredibly ugly and deadly creature, only made it worse.

_Really Merlin,_ Elena thought in resignation as she studied the creature they will need to kill or avoid to get to the flower. _You definitely know how to pick them_. _Nothing less than absolutely deadly_.

Arthur obviously agreed. "Sounds like fun."

Really, if the princess kept going at this rate, Elena would have to start liking him. And then Gaius had to be a pessimistic voice of reason. But Arthur made up his mind and nothing was going to sway him; which meant that Elena was going along for the ride – the princess really would not be able to survive a day without _someone_ watching his back. Merlin was out of commission – so now it was Elena's job to protect the prince.

"If I don't get the antidote, what happens to Merlin?" Arthur asked sounding almost nonchalant.

Gaius paused. "The Mortaeus induces a slow and painful death. He may hold out for four, maybe five days, but not much longer. Eventually he will die."

Arthur nodded and with a determined expression marched out of the room. Elena glanced between the door and Merlin, still struggling to breathe, groaning in pain and sweating from the fever; her eyes shifted to Gaius and then Gwen and with a stubbornly set jaw Elena hurried out after Arthur.

"No, you are not coming with me," Arthur said stiffly before Elena could even open her mouth as she chased after him down the corridor. "That's an order."

"Don't give a damn," she retorted. "The King will have my hide if I don't go with you. Besides, I want to help Merlin, too, and I am no use to anyone sitting there moping. You can either accept that I am coming, or try to stop me, but I will follow regardless."

Arthur glared, but as per usual it did nothing except make Elena even more determined to do the exact opposite of what he told her to – so with a put upon sigh, he shrugged and ignored her smug smirk, continuing on to find his father and get his permission to ride out.

Uther was… less than pleased and even less forthcoming. Elena was almost spitting nails when Uther called saving Merlin a fool's errand, especially because Gaius said it would work – she was offended on Gaius' behalf because the King was a complete and utter arsehole and needed a good slap as much as Arthur often did. What was worse, Arthur, while displeased with being ordered not to go, seemed to just accept it and stomp away to his room to sulk like a scolded child. Elena followed him, far too worked up to be able to open her mouth and not say something she'd regret later, so she didn't say a word until they were in Arthur's rooms and the door was shut behind them.

"You can't be serious!" Elena finally burst out as Arthur tossed his sword on the table, seemingly giving up the idea of going. "Are you really so spineless that you will do as daddy commands, regardless of whether or not said father is an asshole?"

Arthur glared at her venomously. "Watch your tongue! You are speaking about Camelot's King!"

"Like hell, I will!" Elena yelled, on the verge of losing it. "Merlin drank poison for you and this is how you repay him? By hiding behind your father's commands and like a good dog going back to your rooms when ordered?" Arthur didn't respond, so Elena went further. "If you are too craven to defy your father and help Merlin, then you really don't deserve his loyalty. If you won't go, I will go alone and should both Merlin and I die, on your head it will be!"

They glared at each other for a long moment, neither of them willing to forfeit their staring match. It was interrupted by the opening of the door.

"Say what you want about the food, but you can't beat our feasts for entertainment," Morgana said nonchalantly, clearly ignoring the thick tension in the room.

"You have a very weird sense of humour," Elena commented, but she was smiling and Morgana just grinned in response, before turning back to Arthur.

"Morgana, I'm sorry," Arthur sighed. "I should have made sure you were alright."

"Disappointed, actually," Morgana winked at Elena and the Shield barely stifled laughter. "I was looking forward to clumping a couple around the head with a ladle."

"I'm sure the guards could have handled Bayard and his men," Arthur tried to hide his amusement at the picture Morgana had painted in both his and Elena's mind.

"But why let the boys have all the fun, yes, Elena?" the girls chuckled at Arthur's unimpressed look, no doubt at the implication that he needed a girl to protect him. He was so easily riled up.

"Morgana, you shouldn't get involved. It's dangerous," well, that certainly dissolved the light mood Morgana managed to create.

The lady frowned. "Spare me the lecture. I've already had it from Uther."

"If it's any consolation, you weren't the only one," Arthur commented dryly.

"Not that I listen to him," Morgana continued as though Arthur had not spoken. "Sometimes you've got to do what you think is right and damn the consequences."

Arthur frowned. "You think I should go?"

"It doesn't matter what I think," Morgana shrugged nonchalantly. Elena watched Morgana out on a first grade performance of manipulation with baited breath.

"If I don't make it back, who will be the next king of Camelot?" Arthur asked, a note of desperation in his tone. "There's more than just my life at stake."

"And what kind of King would Camelot want?" Morgana asked stubbornly and Elena smiled, almost beaming as Morgana skilfully twisted Arthur to her will and convinced him to do the right thing, still making it look as though it was him making the decision. "One that will risk his life for that of a servant? Or one that does what his father tells him to?"

Arthur accepted the sword and with a solemn nod to Morgana headed for the door. Elena grinned and hugged the lady on her way out, almost skipping after Arthur and making Morgana chuckle watching the two run off on what certainly would seem like a suicide mission.

Except they were Arthur the best knight in Camelot and Elena the Shield who could also fight – and they were both far too stubborn to die on a quest, so… there was nothing to worry about. What could possibly go wrong?

_**And there it is. I may have picked a bad place to end it, but I had it all done up to there, so I couldn't stop myself. If this was a bad idea, do let me know. I don't mind either way, but if you prefer an entire episode per chapter, I can do that. It will just take a tad longer to write and edit, that's all.**_

_**As always, please let me know your thoughts and ideas; while I have a plan, nothing is set in stone and I've already been kicking a few 'fix it' things in mind. I don't know.**_

_**Thank you for reading!**_

_**Lia**_


	5. Chapter 5

The quest for the antidote was not going too well.

Arthur had killed the Cockatrice, sure, with a move Elena thought silly because what kind of an idiot throws his only weapon at the enemy? Luckily, it worked out because as the saying goes, the divines help children, drunks and idiots. Alright, maybe Elena made up that last one, but she really thought that it applied sometimes at least. But on the matter at hand, they were heading towards Merlin's salvation.

"I don't like this," Elena mumbled behind Arthur, glaring at the woman they found in the caves. Really, what kind of stupid story was that? She was lost while running away, but still magically knew the caves and could show them the flower? Was she for real? Of course the ever oblivious idiot of a princess that Arthur was conveniently did not notice anything, or at the very least ignored all the glaring holes and far too conspicuous conveniences of the situation. How did Merlin put up with him without wanting to shake some sense into his dense head?

Oh, right, because Merlin possessed a truly heroic amount of patience and self-control and was destined to put up with the princess until death do them part. Elena still snickered at the whole Destiny thing that made Merlin and Arthur two sides of the same coin, but she could also see how it was true to at least some extent.

That, or Merlin had made that prophecy true by virtue of believing in it. Which was a scary thought and meant that most of Merlin's problems stemmed from the fact that Merlin _thought_ that Arthur was destined to be this great king and was going to _make_ him a great king. Nowhere there was a guarantee that Arthur was in fact a great king or was going to become one on his own.

Thinking any more on that was going to give Elena a migraine.

They had reached an inner chamber of the cave by then and stopped at the deep ravine that split it in two with only a thin outcropping of rock reaching towards the other side. There, in a small ray of light was the Mortaeus flower, growing on the roots of a raggedy tree. Arthur made to step onto the outcropping to get to their prise, but Elena stopped him, concerned about how thin it was. Arthur glared at her impatiently.

"I'm lighter than you," Elena shrugged. "We can test it out and see if I can get to the other side. Then all you have to do is help me get back with the flower. Easy, right?"

Arthur didn't seem to like the idea, but at that point they didn't have a better one and Elena was stubborn – possibly more stubborn than Arthur. And there was some logic in her reasoning, so he let her through to the outcropping, standing close behind her and ready to pull her back should the ledge prove unstable.

It was fine, at least at first. Elena made it to the edge alright and leapt to the far wall, huddling there for a moment to regain her footing. Everything still was fine; that is, until Arthur himself stepped out onto the ledge to follow. Then the servant girl that led them into the cave started chanting something and the cave shook.

"Hey!" Elena yelled with a scowl. "Whatever you are trying to do, stop it!"

The sorceress didn't, not that Elena expected her to. She just continued chanting until the ledge gave and Arthur was forced to leap across to the ledge Elena occupied, not quite making it and dangling over the darkness below. Since now it fell to her to protect Arthur in Merlin's stead, Elena dropped to her knees and reached down to try and help Arthur pull himself up – she carried no illusions about her ability to lift him. Even without armour he was far too fat and heavy for her to move.

She didn't get much done when the sorceress gleefully announced that they had a visitor.

"A-Arthur," Elena stuttered, involuntarily scurrying back from the giant disgusting insect that was crawling closer to her and the prince. "I-It's a freaking spider!"

"Don't just stand there!" Arthur yelled at her, still dangling over the endless pit of darkness. "Draw that damn sword and kill it!"

Elena looked at him as though he was insane and to her he was – drawing a sword to kill it would mean getting close and personal with the thing and Elena _loathed_ spiders. She was not ashamed to admit that she was scared to death of them and she hated them with a passion. Which also meant that Arthur was screwed, because there was no way in hell Elena was going anywhere near that giant thing with nothing but a sword. If she had a lance or a very-very long stick, she may have tried to knock it off the ledge and into the ravine, but as it were, there was nothing she could do without having a panic attack.

Arthur must have realised that he was on his own because he grunted and dangled on one arm, pulling his own sword out with the other and taking care of the creepy crawly with no problem. Elena would have been impressed, had she not been scared witless because she could hear more spiders scurrying up the wall towards them.

The sorceress had condescendingly praised Arthur's skill and then declared that it was not Arthur's fate to die by her hand and Elena wanted to facepalm. Knowing that, the woman _still_ tried to kill Arthur? Really? Sorcerers. What a crazy bunch.

That didn't change the fact that the woman left, and the last torch went with her and now Elena and Arthur were left in the dark with god knows how many more spiders crawling everywhere and Arthur still dangling over the edge of a ravine. Talk about things going from bad to worse.

Except apparently they had a guardian angel somewhere – hint, hint, Merlin! – as a glowing ball of pale blue light floated up from somewhere beneath Arthur and illuminated the cave enough for them to be able to move now.

Arthur, being his dense self, yelled at the ball of light to finish him off and Elena let out a slightly hysterical laugh at his stupidity, because, really, what a ball of light was going to do? It just hovered above them, seeming to be waiting for them to start moving.

"C'mon, Princess," Elena said, leaning back over to try and help Arthur up. "Let's get the heck out of here before we are overrun by something I'd really rather not think about."

Arthur glared again, probably still sore about the whole spider incident, but accepted Elena's meagre help and led the way up towards the obscure exit. The light moved higher, as though showing them the path and they were happy to follow – except the flower they were after was right there on the wall and not quite where the light wanted them to go.

They traded a look and took off towards the flower, studiously ignoring the screeching spiders that were crawling towards them; there were so many of them that they seemed to be coming in waves from all directions. Had Elena been alone, she would have probably just jumped right off the ledge and killed herself just to be away from all those spiders…

Luckily, with the flower in Arthur's possession, they were now running for the exit and Arthur, the chivalrous knight that he sometimes was, pushed Elena out ahead of him. And then they were outside and the light was gone and the spiders were left behind in the dark somewhere.

"If we ever run into giant spiders again," Elena panted as she plonked herself down on the grass a good distance from the opening they had crawled out of. "I will quit. I don't care what's at stake. I will quit."

"Don't be such a girl, Elena," Arthur retorted and started to march away towards where they left their horses. Elena stared at his back in disbelief.

"Uh, princess?" Arthur didn't reply. "You do realise that I _am_ a girl? And that I take offence at what you are insinuating!"

Arthur continued on without stopping. "You were squealing at the sight of a spider. Granted, it was a big spider, but you are armed. You are supposed to be my Shield. That requires courage, which you clearly lack. I don't know what my father was thinking, making you _my_ _Protector_."

_Oh, that stung._ Elena's mildly annoyed glare turned venomous.

"You know what, Pendragon? I wish those bloody spiders ate your ungrateful hide!"

The ride back to Camelot was spent in tense silence. Arthur pretended that Elena wasn't there and Elena glared daggers at his back, and if looks could kill Arthur would have been all over the landscape in tiny little pieces. It may have been childish of her, but Elena resolved not to speak to Arthur until he at least apologised, which probably meant that she will never speak to him again. Because really, Arthur apologising? The world would probably end the day Arthur learns some manners.

Of course that plan went south as soon as they reached the gates of Camelot and found the way in blocked by guards with orders to bring Arthur to the dungeons as soon as he was in sight. It was _clearly_ not going to end well; the only thing they could hope for was to quickly explain themselves and get to Gaius. But they must have been out of luck at that point.

_Why can't it be easy, just once!_ Elena lamented in her head as she ran towards the physician's quarters. Uther had been unrelenting and had Arthur locked in the dungeons and Elena banned from there faster than she could say shite. Worse, yet was that from the sounds and Uther's rather thunderous countenance when he came back up, Arthur still had the flower and there was a distinct possibility the King destroyed it just on principle.

It was rather unfortunate, but Elena kind of expected Uther to do something like that because he was that much of a jerk.

Finally the physician's door came into view and Elena barely slowed down as she reached it.

"Arthur's been arrested and Uther won't let even me go see him!" Elena panted out as she burst into Gaius' chambers startling both him and Gwen. "He has the flower! I hadn't the time to get it from him before he was locked up and now I have no way of reaching him!"

Gaius and Gwen traded a look. "And Uther didn't lock you up with him?"

Elena shook her head, having more or less caught her breath. "Apparently to him I was simply doing my duty, following Arthur and protecting him. It certainly helped that I mentioned a sorceress we found at the caves that tried to kill us. He was almost singing me praises at that point. Still won't let me see Arthur, though."

"I could sneak into the dungeons," Gwen offered, showing the steel backbone that usually hid under her brightly coloured dresses and amiable exterior.

"It's too dangerous," Gaius warned, but one look to Merlin wheezing on the bed and it was decided. Elena offered to come with Gwen, but it would have been too suspicious for her to be there, so she stayed with Gaius while they waited.

While Gwen was gone, Gaius told Elena about the magic Merlin had been doing in his sleep and Elena confirmed that an orb of blue light had in fact appeared when she and Arthur had been stuck in the cave in the dark and led them out to safety. Merlin was clearly something else if he was saving Arthur's hide even when he himself was dying and if Gaius was to be believed, he was also telling prophesies at the same time. Talk about multitasking.

On the topic of tasks, Gwen finally returned from her expedition to the dungeons and while winded, she also had the prize and that was the first piece of good news they'd had since returning to the city. In fact, the entire debacle was a nightmare from King Bayard's arrival to now. Hopefully they were about to put it all behind them now as soon as Gaius made the antidote and Merlin drank it.

Gaius had taken to making the potion immediately, leaving Elena standing uselessly at the foot of Merlin's bed while Gwen wetted a towel and mopped the warlock's forehead. He was pale and drawn and looked horrible, which was to be expected but at the same time, it was _Merlin_. It was silly to think that way, but there was just something wrong with the picture of Merlin in a sickbed, dying. He was meant to run around with a smile and do magic while no one was looking. But life was rarely what people wanted or liked, so there was that.

Elena's musings were interrupted by Gaius suddenly stopping his frantic potion preparation and bursting out with words Elena did not want to hear: they needed magic to save Merlin and as far as Elena knew none of them had it besides the warlock in question.

Gwen was predictably against it and Gaius sent her off for fresh water as means of getting her out of the room. Elena had looked at him in surprise before it dawned on her that Gaius must have practiced magic before the Purge. She wanted to hit herself for that stupidity because it was really kind of obvious without needing Merlin or Gaius to spell it out for her.

"Gaius?" Elena asked uncertainly once Gwen was out the door. Gaius took a deep breath and nodded, lifting the bowl with the antidote and beginning the spell. Elena stood and made her way to the door to keep watch – it won't do for someone to come in and catch Gaius doing magic. Not after all the trouble they had gone to for the antidote.

Just as Gaius finished and the potion settled down, Gwen rushed in, nearly knocking Elena over and apologising without stopping. Elena waved her off, taking the bowl of water from her to give to Gaius while Gwen returned to Merlin's bedside.

"Hold his nose," Gaius instructed Gwen and poured the potion down Merlin's throat, encouraging him to swallow until everything was gone. The three stared at the secret warlock, barely breathing themselves – why wasn't he waking, was the potion working?

And then Merlin stopped breathing. Gwen covered her mouth with her hands, staring at the still body in disbelief as Gaius leaned down to listen for Merlin's heart and then announced with surprise that his heart had stopped. Elena pretty much stopped breathing herself at that. Merlin, the sunny, always smiling Merlin could _not_ be dead. Elena and Arthur had managed to work together to save him and he was the only reason Elena even could put up with the Prince. With Merlin gone…

It was a very bleak prospect.

"You should be ashamed of yourself, you are old enough to be her grandfather!"

Merlin was alive. Merlin was alive, he was smiling and was looking at Gaius who was hugging Gwen. Wait, when did Gaius start hugging Gwen?

"You are not dead?" Elena asked, feeling stupid for asking it, but still not able to stop herself as she reached for the warlock and touched his shoulder to see if it was real. Merlin rolled his eyes with a grin.

"No, I'm a ghost come back to haunt you," he told her, managing to keep a straight face for all of two seconds before both of them laughed and Elena spontaneously hugged him.

Elena was not the only one overwhelmed by Merlin's awakening and as soon as she pulled back, Gwen had ambushed Merlin with a kiss. Predictably she had blushed and started babbling, shocked at herself and only becoming more so when Elena burst out laughing, although it was more relief at Merlin being alive and not at Gwen having a crush on their mutual magical friend.

Merlin seemed entirely unruffled assuring that it was more than fine which sent Elena into another fit of laughter, Gwen blushed even brighter and Gaius started chuckling. It was nothing less than a miracle that Merlin was alive, but at the same time he was magic. Why wouldn't he be fine despite all odds? Elena really hoped that this would be the last time they would come that close to losing Merlin, but on some level also knew that it was likely to be the exact opposite. Arthur seemed to be a danger magnet of epic proportions and her intuition told her that this was only the beginning.

And there was to hoping they were going to enjoy the journey.


End file.
